03x04 - Wild Ponies

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How do we
get off the island?

[Chris]
on this episode of
kratts' creatures...

This doesn't make sense.

We're looking for

The wild ponies
of assateague island.

Chris, look!

We found them.

Where'd they go?

Now I'm completely confused.

[Martin]
it's simple.

When all else fails...

[Chris]
run!

We are running wild...

[Martin]
on land and in the water.

That is how I spell relief.

Iarriba! Iarriba!

Iandale!

O.k., Creature clubbers,

I'll give you
two guesses.

Today we're talking
serious...

Real serious.

We're talking
creatures, right?

And the creatures we're
going to talk about...

Are tough.

They got that right.

The tough,
the powerful,
and the fast.

Seeing as we're
on horses,

One of the toughest,
most powerful,

And fastest creatures
in the world,

What do you figure?

Well, if you figured
we're talking horses,

You figured right.

When you're talking horses,

You're talking more breeds
than you can shake a tail at.

There's an incredible variety of
horse breeds round the world--

Ranging from the shire breed,
who stand 5' 8",

Down to falabella ponies,

Who stand about


And believe it or not,

Zebras, donkeys, and horses
are all closely related.

They belong to an animal family
called the equidae,

And except zebras,

All members of the equidae
have been domesticated.

There's not many places left

Where wild horses
still run free.

When most people
think of horses,

They think of cowboys
on the open plains.

But these are
domestic horses.

We're looking
for wild horses...

Or at least what we call
wild horses.

Other than
przewalksi's horse,

There are no true
wild horses.

[Chris]
in prehistoric times,

Wild horses lived
all over asia, europe,

South and north america.

[Martin]
but over time,
they all went extinct.

[Chris]
except for przewalksi's horse,

Named for the russian explorer
who discovered him in mongolia.

[Martin]
now this horse
is only found in zoos.

The wild horses we're looking
for are domesticated horses

Who were set free
to live in the wild.

We're not going out west
to find wild horses.

Nope.
We're heading east

To check out
probably the last place

You'd expect
to find wild horses.

Let's hit the water!

The water?

Now I'm completely
confused.

Water to find horses?

It might seem strange
that we're taking a canoe

To see wild ponies.

No, but it does
seem strange

That I'm doing
all the paddling.

When you're
on a creature mission,

You go where
the creatures are,

No matter
how strange it seems.

In this case,
it means going

To assateague island,
virginia.

I'd have known that
if they'd said wild ponies

Rather than horses.

Assateague island
is world-famous.

The guys are heading

To one of the last refuges
for wild ponies--

On the assateague/chincoteague
islands,

Between maryland and virginia.

Hold on--islands?

This doesn't make any sense.

How did wild ponies wind up
on an island off virginia?

[Ttark]
it wasn't the ponies' idea.

When have you
heard a pony say,

"Hey, let's swim over
to maryland"?

[Nicker]

The answer is...

Never. Talk to any pony.

I guarantee you,
the subject never comes up.

What happened is that someone
put them there.

Not just somebody--
the spanish.

We're talking more than


[Ttark]
I was just about
to say that.

This is awesome!

They brought the ponies
from europe in a big galleon.

It was
no easy ride.

The story goes
that one of the galleons sank

And 95 ponies
swam to assateague.

Oh-oh. I wonder
if the guys know about

Those half-sunk pylons
in the bay.

[Martin and chris]
aah!

[Allison]
oh, no. Too late.

Sorry, guys.

Look at it this way.

It's got to be all
uphill from here.

Let's go find
those ponies!

[Chris]
assateague is a great place

To check out wild creatures--
not just ponies.

[Martin]
this island is
only 35 miles long,

But it provides a rich habitat
for a lot of cool creatures--

[Chris]
like squirrels, deer,

Beavers, raccoons,
rodents, and turtles--

[Martin]
also a wide variety

Of water and shore birds.

[Chris]
in fact, about


Can be found here

Feeding on the abundant grasses,
insects, and aquatic life.

What is that?
Is it a vulture?

Is it an osprey?

No. It's a kid.

Wow! That is one
cool kite.

Can I try it?

Sure.

I'm chris,
and that's martin.

What's your name?

Alex.

Alex, have you seen
any wild ponies?

I knew
you'd ask me that.

How?

All nature
wildlife shows do.

Oh. Well, have you
seen any ponies?

There's some
at the end of the beach.

Thanks, alex.

[Chris]
martin, come on.

Alex, what is wrong
with this kite?

There are
ponies over here.

Here you go.
Thanks, alex.

When you're looking
for wild ponies,

First thing
to look for--

Hoofprints!

They're not shoed
horses, either.

That means
we're getting close

To the wild ponies.

The reason
a horse has hooves

Is simple
and really cool.

If you do much running,

It's an advantage to have
sturdy, lightweight shoes.

That's what hooves
are--built-in shoes.

One of the most
amazing things about a horse

Is that its foot
is just a single toe,

And its hoof
is nothing but a toenail.

Prehistoric horses
actually had three toes.

Over the course of hundreds
of thousands of years,

Two of them were dropped.

[Chris]
on this single toe,

The nail grew longer
and flatter into a hard hoof.

Actually,
horses are running on tiptoe.

[Martin]
that lengthens their legs,

Giving them a longer stride
and lets them run faster.

[Allison]
but, guys, that doesn't explain

Why domestic horses
wear shoes.

[Chris]
I'm on top of this one.

Why do domestic horses
need shoes

And wild horses don't?

Because people ride
domestic horses,

And that extra weight
breaks and cracks their hooves,

So they need shoes
for protection...

But when you lose
that extra weight,

Who needs shoes?

[Ttark]
that's nothing!

I remember when horses
didn't even have hooves.

Matter of fact,
they were the size of a sheep,

And no one
took them seriously.

You knew horses
way back then?

[Ttark]
I knew everybody.

Here's another thing.

Did you know horses are related
to rhinos and tapirs?

Yeah. Right, ttark.

Accessing horse relatives.

See, ttark, it's--

A rhinoceros and a tapir?

A rhinoceros and a tapir?

Ttark, you were right.

But how can that be?

Neither of them
looks anything like a horse.

It was about


We were all
lounging around,

And suddenly
who appears on the scene?

This weird-looking dude--
condylarth.

Only a few feet tall,
a bit like a sheep--

But he had two things--
toes and ambition.

Before he knew it,
he'd split into two species.

One went off and evolved
into rhinos and tapirs,

And the other said,
"no horns for me, thanks.

I'll try a little
horsing around."

And...da-da-da-da da-da...

The modern horse.
Not bad, huh?

That's the difference
between horses then and now.

What's the difference between
wild ponies and domestic horses?

First off,
finding domestic horses

Is a lot easier for me
than finding wild ponies

Will be for the guys.

But the truth is
domestic horses

Are no less interesting...

Or beautiful.

You'd think a wild horse

Would be bigger
than a farm horse.

Actually, wild ponies
are smaller than these guys.

More importantly,
they have shorter forelegs.

If you think of bones
as these two pieces of wood,

The thin one breaks easily.

But the thicker one...

Not a chance.

These are the kind
of bones I'd want

If I were a horse.

[Martin]
exactly. Wild horses need

Shorter, stronger bones
that won't break easily.

[Chris]
there's another reason

Wild ponies are smaller
than domestic horses.

It's simple--

Food.

Good grass and oats

Are the favorite foods
of all horses,

But wild ponies
don't always get that stuff.

They have to make do
with whatever they can find.

Which is why wild ponies
are much smaller

Than domestic horses.

The grass here
isn't very nutritious,

And wild horses don't have

The best digestive systems
in the herbivore world.

So horses
have to eat constantly

To keep themselves going,

Sometimes as much
as 18 hours a day.

That's why the grass here
is cut so short.

They've mowed
the whole place down.

[Chris]
hey, martin!

Here's some real proof
there are ponies around.

That's a lot of proof.
Come on!

Unlike wild ponies,

Domestic horses
don't have to search for food.

They're fed
fresh grains and oats,

Almost the same stuff
we eat in our breakfast cereal.

I'd take bran flakes
over sawgrass any day.

All the signs
show we're close

To a band of wild ponies.

That's what a family
of wild ponies is called.

[Martin]
hey, look over there!

[Chris]
we found them--

The wild ponies of assateague.

[Chris]
a band consists

Of a powerful male horse,
or stallion,

A number of female horses,
or mares,

And their young.

[Martin]
within the band,

There is a strict ranking,
with the stallion as leader...

[Chris]
and the lead mare
as second in command.

[Martin]
these ponies spend

A lot of time eating,

About 80% of every day.

[Chris]
they mainly eat

This really salty stuff

Called salt marsh cordgrass.

[Allison]
if you think wild ponies

Look tough, you're right.

They're tough
and territorial.

My only question is,

How will the guys
get closer to them,

Unless they're
going to do something crazy

Like join the band?

What
we've got to do

Is find a way
to join the band

So we can learn
what it's like from
their viewpoint.

Except it might
not be easy

Getting close
to those ponies.

Yeah,
but I've got a plan.

[Neigh]

[Chris]
where are they?

I don't know.
I can't see.

I can't see
anything, either.

Wait!
There they are.

Let's move!

Slow down.

Hmm. This
might work.

Whoa!

Tell me
about these things.

Martin, I think we're
forgetting something.

What are you
talking about?

I said we're
forgetting something.

Stallions are really
protective of the band.

They'll always go after
a strange horse.

I think we forgot
something else.

What's that?

Horses have
excellent eyesight

And a great
sense of smell.

I don't think we're
fooling these guys.

Uh-oh.

What's going on?

He's staring
us down.

A stallion?

A stallion stare-down
is bad news.

No kidding.

Wait.
He may charge us.

You know what I think
we should do?

No. I can't even
see what's going on.

Run!

Get me out
of this thing!

Come on! Come on!

Go, go, go, go!

Whoa!

Got to go!

Wild ponies can outrun
almost anything.

They can go for hours

Because of their great lungs
and powerful legs.

[Martin]
they have eyes on the sides
of their heads.

They can see in front,
to the side, and behind them.

[Chris]
they can even move
each eye independently.

Maybe the best way
to join them

Is to walk out there,
take it slow

So they'll know
we're not a thr*at.

Then we can just
wander around with them.

[Allison]
taking it slow is right.

Any closer, and they could
have gotten horse-kicked.

An angry horse
is serious trouble.

[Chris]
that's why this time

We're playing it cool.

[Martin]
this is another band of ponies!

[Chris]
yeah.

And check out that stallion.

[Martin]
uh-oh.

I think an outsider's
trying to move in

On this stallion's mares.

[Chris]
there's only one way

To handle that--
a stallion scrap.

[Martin]
they do the stallion stare-down.

[Neighing]

[Chris]
they smell each other.

[Martin]
they start the parallel prance--

Trotting beside each other
in unison.

[Chris]
that lets each stallion
size up the competition.

[Martin]
if no one backs down,

They'll move to biting,
which gets pretty nasty.

[Chris]
they'll back-kick, too,

But they rarely
hit each other.

[Martin]
these fights can last

From a few minutes
to an hour.

[Chris]
usually, they end
without serious injury.

[Martin]
but if a stallion's really mad,

It can mean serious trouble.

Hyperbolic humans!

What's all this
"trouble" stuff?

Horses only fight
when they feel threatened.

Even then, the fight
isn't as rough as it looks.

What you've got
to look out for is--

Oh!--

Getting on a horse's
bad side.

Which is why
when people shoe a horse,

They stand beside it,
not behind it.

Shoeing a horse
looks painful,

But it's a necessary step

To protect the horse
when he runs.

Actually, it hurts no more
than cutting your fingernail.

The trick to any human/creature
relationship is simple--

Respect.

You need to respect
the creature's natural instincts

And her individual
creaturnality.

You need to know them
like you'd know a friend.

Horses and donkeys
have worked with humans

For an amazingly long time.

Like, how does


Before then, if people wanted
to travel, they walked.

If they wanted to take anything
with them, they carried it.

Then somebody figured out
how to domesticate horses,

And everything changed.

For centuries,

Horses were an essential part
of everyday life.

Only in the last 80 years

Have automobiles
taken their place.

When the car
was first invented,

People called it
a horseless carriage.

Horses were
the crucial creature

For the creation
of the western world--

In exploration,
transportation,

m*llitary conquest,
agriculture.

Without domesticated horses,

Who knows how the world
would have developed?

There have been real tradeoffs
for domesticated horses.

With man,
they get fed better,

And they don't have to worry
about natural predators,

But what are they missing
from their life in the wild?

[Insects buzzing]

One thing
domesticated horses

Don't have to deal with

Are all these bugs,
ticks, and mosquitoes.

Unlike humans,

Wild ponies can't
exactly spray themselves

With insect repellent.

Neither can we.

So we've got to do
what the horses do.

[Martin]
you might think wild creatures

Aren't as bothered
by bugs as we are.

[Chris]
bugs really bug them,too.

[Martin]
greenheads, deer flies,

And stable flies
are potentially dangerous.

[Chris]
they can leave open sores
that may get infected...

[Martin]
or transmit diseases

Like equine infectious anemia.

That means for a wild horse,

Bugs can be more
than just annoying.

[Chris]
they can be deadly.

Bugs are a serious problem.

They could even
k*ll a young foal.

But horses are
pretty resourceful.

They've come up
with all sorts of ways

To deal with the problem.

A pony will sometimes
rub against trees

To get rid of bugs and ticks.

[Martin]
in fact, they spend
a lot of time

Rubbing against tree trunks,
branches, leaves--

Anything to get relief
from ticks and bugs.

[Chris]
they'll even go so far

As to walk through
thorny, thick brush

To scrape off
the pesky parasites.

[Martin]
the wild ponies of assateague

Have been dealing with bugs
for 300 years.

[Chris]
they've developed ways

Of helping each other
deal with the bug problem.

[Martin]
they'll provide

A bug-biting service
for other members of the band.

[Chris]
this spells relief

For band members.

It's also a way
of reaffirming bonds.

[Martin]
it's the wild pony
way of saying,

"If you bite bugs
off my mane,

I'll bite bugs off yours."

[Chris]
they've come to depend

On the old cattle egret.

This bird eats bugs
for breakfast, lunch,

And dinner.

[Martin]
and what better place to eat

Than off a pony's belly?

[Chris]
plus, as the ponies
walk around,

They flush out bugs
from the grass--

A perfect opportunity
for the egret to nab a meal.

[Martin]
it's a cooperative
sharing solution.

[Chris]
for the egret,

The horse is a meal train
who's always on time.

[Martin]
for the horse, the egret

Is a feathered friend
who spells relief.

When all else fails

And the bugs
have become too much,

The ponies sometimes--

Aah!

Head for the water.

Chincoteague bay makes a great
wild pony wading pool.

It's the one place
bugs can't get at them.

Whoo!

That is how I spell relief!

You know,
the difference between

Wild horses
and domestic horses

Is more than
insect irritations.

It all starts out
at the beginning of their lives.

[Allison]
domestic mares have an advantage

When it comes
to giving birth on a farm.

Disease can be checked,
and vets are nearby to help out.

Out in the wild,
baby horses, or foals,

May not get sick
as often as farm horses,

But if they do, there's
no medicine to help them.

That means
they might not make it.

The death of a foal
is devastating to a horse mom.

In the wild,
there are no veterinarians

To help a mare
who's expecting,

So everything's
up to nature,

First when the foal
is born

And then as it grows up.

[Martin]
when a wild mare

Is ready to give birth,

She'll usually separate
herself from the band.

[Chris]
she'll find a quiet place

To lie down,

And there she'll give birth.

Once born, the foal
is tiny and trembling.

Mom will lick
and nuzzle him,

Encouraging him
to stand up.

[Martin]
normally, within an hour,

The colt has stood up,
wobbling,

But is already
attempting to nurse.

[Chris]
the first hours are crucial.

This is the time
that mom and her baby bond

And learn how
to recognize each other.

Within hours of its birth,

The mother will bring the foal
back into the band.

[Chris]
the members of the band

Come over to inspect
the new addition...

[Martin]
but mom usually keeps them away.

She has to be extra careful

That her foal doesn't get
accidentally injured.

[Chris]
over time, though,

She'll introduce her foal
to the entire band.

It might seem
like these foals

Are just fooling around,

And they are,

But they're also learning
important lessons

About life in the wild.

[Martin]
new foals spend lots of time

Horsing around.

[Chris]
they can always be seen

Running, kicking, and jumping
with the band.

[Martin]
foals play a kind of horse tag.

It's fun, and it's also
how they become stronger.

[Chris]
they're practicing for the life

They must one day lead.

[Martin]
when they're about 3 years old,

Young stallions start
to challenge their father.

After a few challenges,

The father chases
the young stallion away.

[Chris]
that means it's time

For the young stallion
to fend for himself

And face the challenges of life
outside the band.

One of the biggest
challenges

Facing ponies
in the wild

Is staying
in the wild.

With human cities
and towns

Getting bigger
and bigger every day,

Wild areas
for wild horses

Are getting
smaller and smaller.

Today in north america,

Wild horses can
really only be found

In some areas
of wyoming,

Regions of nevada
and montana...

Sable island
off nova scotia...

And here,
on assateague island.

We've got to protect

These areas
and make sure wild ponies

Have all the space
they need.

They're one
of the coolest creatures.

We've got to let them do
what they do best--

Living in the wild.

O.k., So what's better,

Being a wild horse
or a domestic horse?

Life for domestic horses
is definitely a lot easier.

But wild horses
get to live

In their natural
environment--

No fences, no corrals.

The best thing

Is they don't have
to work for anybody.

They have freedom.

That's true. They've got
all those open spaces

To play in and fool around.

They also
face problems

That domestic horses
don't.

There are no warm barns
when it's cold.

Nobody is around
to feed them.

They have to find
their own food.

But they don't
have to work,

And they get to be free.

So it's a tradeoff.

Being a wild horse
is pretty good,

And being a domestic
horse is pretty good.

It's just different.

Each situation has
its pros and cons.

Speaking of different,

Won't we need another way
to get off the island?

We've wrecked the boat.

We're on another
creature adventure.

Let's swim for it.

Next stop--
grand bahama island!

Dolphins,
here we come!

Swimming to the bahamas
from virginia?

That's an insane thing to do.

Who knows
what they might find

In the waters out there.

So how are we doing?

I guess we've gone
around 5 miles,

So we have about
a thousand to go.

So we're going
to make it.

Yeah.

Coast guard!

Cool.

I wonder what
they're doing out here.

They're coming
straight for us.

[Man]
hey, guys!

How's it going?

Fine.

How's it going?

All right.

What are you
guys up to--
rescuing people?

"In terms
of the creature world,

"Horses may be a recent
addition to north america,

"But without them,

Our world would have developed
a lot differently."

If there's one creature
humans can rely on,

It's horses,

And if there are two creatures
ican rely on--

We've got a boat!

Maybe we could
convince them

To take us
to australia.

It's worth a try.

Hey, guys...

How'd you like to see

Some really cool
creatures?

What kind
of creatures?

[Chris]
you asked the right guys.

[Martin]
there's kangaroos, of course.

[Chris]
there's this flying squirrel

Called the sugar glider...